Conflict In Romeo and Juliet

     One of the main conflicts in the play Romeo and Juliet is that the two have a forbidden love that goes against their families and the society in which they live. The Montagues and Capulets hate each other and for their children to fall in love is the worst possible thing that could happen. So this is a case of person vs. society. Another huge conflict is the person vs. self when Juliet has to decide for herself whether to go along with her parents plan for her life or choose her own path. In Act 4, Juliet's parents have chosen her husband and are planning her wedding, not even considering her feelings. She would rather die than marry Paris and plans to fake her own death to escape this terrible fate.

     Personally, I want to choose my own path for life and if I were in Juliet's situation, I would also rebel. All teenagers want to break free from authority and make their own decisions at some point. This is shown when Juliet goes to Friar Lawrence to vent about having to marry Paris. She claims that she would rather die than marry him and longs to somehow escape. I do this all the time, I just don't plan on killing myself. Sometimes I don't want to listen to my parents and just feel like slipping away to do what I please. But I have to reason with myself and know that rebelling would get me into more trouble. Person vs. Self is a very common conflict because everyone has trouble deciding what to do in certain situations. The difference is that our decisions usually aren't so extreme as Juliet's.

Romeo and Juliet: It's Everywhere!

     There are many similarities and references to  Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet in modern culture. In the novel The Luxe by Anna Godbersen, the main character is in a situation similar to Juliet. Juliet's parents want her to marry the wealthy, respectable Paris. But they don't know that she is secretly in love with Romeo and longs to marry him instead. Juliet knows she could never marry Romeo because he is the son of her family's greatest enemy. Similarly, in The Luxe, when Elizabeth discovers that her family's money has run out, she is pressured to marry someone wealthy so she can support her family. But she is also in love with someone else, someone her mother would never approve of. She is forced to make the decision to either marry for love or marry for money to take care of her family. Both girls secretly go against the status quo and the desires of their families. This novel captures a major theme  in the play that love conquers social status and wealth.